How many elementary particles are there, really?

The math behind sloppy card shuffles; Why the human genome’s tangled physicality may confound AI; The Quanta Podcast

Math and Science News from Quanta Magazine View this email in your browser QUALIA | ALL TOPICS   How Many Elementary Particles Are There, Really? By NATALIE WOLCHOVER Plausible answers range from 17 to — in all seriousness — 995.5. Read the article PROBABILITY   Seven Perfect Shuffles Randomize a Deck of Cards. But How Many Sloppy Ones? By JOHN PAVLUS A decades-old proof showed that seven shuffles are enough to mix up a deck of cards. But it requires you to cut the deck with the precision of a professional magician. A new proof gets around that obstacle. Read the article EXPLAINERS   Why the Human Genome’s Tangled Physicality May Confound AI By PHILIP BALL Our genetic heritage is not a blueprint or an algorithm, as many biologists have imagined, but something else entirely. Read the article THE QUANTA PODCAST   The ‘Truth Machine’ That Is Changing Math Podcast hosted by SAMIR PATEL with KEVIN HARTNETT The computer program Lean might revolutionize mathematics. It has verified more than a quarter of a million theorems and led to new insights. But does it change what math is, or can be? Listen (Apple) | Listen (Spotify) Read the article Follow Quanta Unsubscribe | About Quanta | My Bookmarks Privacy Policy | Terms | Contact Us   Copyright © 2025 Quanta Magazine, an editorially independent division of the Simons Foundation Simons Foundation 160 5th Avenue, 7th Floor New York, NY 10010